Planning a UW Event

Guideline of how to plan an event at UW–Madison.

All contracts must abide by UW’s maximum allowed rates/costs for events. (See chart below.)

Catering

Any catering services procured must adhere to requirements set forth in Policy UW-3049 Catering Policy. University Housing Catering or Wisconsin Union Catering should be utilized whenever possible.

List of UW catering services on campus

• University Housing Catering
• Wisconsin Union Catering

Facilities

The Division of Business Services encourages the use of campus facilities for events. It is also recommended that campus departments utilize one of UW-Madison’s Conference Services departments for their planning needs.

List of conference services departments on campus

• UW Conferences and Events (Fluno Center, Pyle Center, Grainger Hall, Discovery Building)
• Wisconsin Union Meeting and Conference Services
• University Housing Conference Services
• PLACE: Professional Learning and Community Education

All contracts for events taking place off-campus (with non-UW facilities) must be reviewed, signed, and approved by Purchasing Services at UW–Madison. See UW-3053 Signatory Authority (Agreements/Contracts) Policy.

On-campus facilities include: Union South, Memorial Union, Pyle Center, Lowell Center, Discovery Building, Fluno Center, and Gordon Commons.

Determining purchasing authority

Before Purchasing Services will sign or approve a contract, Purchasing Authority must be determined.

When the total cost of an event taking place off-campus is expected to exceed $5,000, a simplified bid must be performed to select a vendor. Total costs include: hotel rooms, meeting rooms, catering, AV, etc.

• Exception: Bidding is not required if participants are paying registration fees to attend the event AND the collected fees will cover the entire cost of the event.
• Exception: Bidding may be waived if a sole source justification is provided. Purchasing Services will determine if the sole source justification is approved.

Hosted events are subject to the same per-person meal payment limits as Business Meals.

Alcohol charges and excess per-person meal amounts may be charged to UW funding if a registration fee sufficient to cover these costs is collected. An accounting of the event registration fees collected and expenses incurred must be completed by the departmental event organizers and made available upon request.

Review Policy UW-6003 UW-Madison Specific Alcohol Beverage Regulations prior to hosting an event. If a sufficient registration fee is not collected, alcohol must be charged to University of Wisconsin Foundation (UW Foundation) funds, if available. Excess meal and nonalcoholic beverages may be charged to UW Foundation or UW-Madison Gift funds.

Reconciling a Purchasing Card, a Shared Liability Card, or out-of-pocket transaction in Workday Expenses allows for billing to UW Foundation. Foundation Expense Items must be utilized in order to bill UW Foundation, and a Business Meal Calculator should be attached to the expense report. For more information on Foundation Billing in Workday Expenses, see Procedure 3024.8 Using UW Foundation Funding in Workday Expenses.

Refreshment break expenses are allowable for Hosted Events. The break may consist of nonalcoholic beverages such as coffee, tea or soft drinks, and at the discretion of each institution, food items may be included. The total cost must not exceed the maximums set forth above.

A reception is a gathering of individuals associated with a UW­ sponsored event that provides the opportunity for interaction in a setting that is not purely social in nature. Reception costs must be within the meal maximums for the time of day the reception is held. Reception costs are subject to the same per-person meal, overage, and alcohol payment limits as Business Meals/hosted events. If a reception is held between meal periods, the maximum rate applies to the higher of the two meal limits. Even though it may not be possible to determine in advance how many will actually attend, a reasonable effort should be made to minimize expenses resulting from overestimated attendance. The hosting department should be prepared to justify the cost of the event to the news media and to political and private interests.

Best-judgment purchases for hosted meals and events may be paid for using a Purchasing Card, a Shared Liability Card, or out-of-pocket payment method. Workday Expenses allows for Purchasing Card, Shared Liability Card, and out-of-pocket transactions to be billed to UW Foundation.

Hosted event payments in excess of $5,000 may require a simplified bid and must be processed on an external requisition/purchase order and approved by Purchasing Services.